Fortescue, Stephen Charles
Description
The thesis examines the powers and tasks of
primary party organisations (PPO's) in non-production
institutions in terms of a concept I have called "staff
generalism". Based on a number of Western line-staff
models the concept proposes that a PPO's principal task
is to monitor and work for long-term improvement in the
performance of its "host" organisation. The closely
integrated nature of the PPO's relationship with the
"host" organisation provides the setting for the performance
of...[Show more] this task, while a limited number of powers, formally
summed up in the "right of control" but greatly variable
in practice, provide the means.
The empirical evidence presented in the thesis
indicates that while "staff generalism" provides a good
basic understanding of the intended and actual activities
of PPO's, a number of other factors must be considered.
They also have extensive and important ideological tasks
not fully explained by "staff generalism"; the Soviet
authorities appear to expect, and gain, a greater degree of
involvement in short-term operations than is allowed for by
"staff generalist" principles; and a large amount of
illegal and semi-legal PPO-"host" organisation collusion
prevents a proper "staff generalist" performance. These findings are derived from a considerable
amount of empirical analysis of PPO ideological and
operational activities. (Chapter One examines ideological
activities; Chapter Two, PPO powers; and Chapter Three
their operational activities.) Other chapters devote
specific attention to case studies of PPO behaviour.
(Chapter Four describes the activities of ministerial PPO's
since 1965 and Appendix B the role of the PPO of the Moscow
Union of Writers in the 1962 to 1964 literary debate.)
Chapter Six summarises the effectiveness of PPO's.
The thesis presents and analyses a considerable
amount of previously unused information on the work of
non-production PPO's. In doing so it has developed, applied
and attempted to evaluate a concept previously little known
to political scientists. It reaches the conclusion that
the concept contributes to an understanding of the Soviet
system. It also concludes that the leaders of large-scale
Western organisations, with the benefit of Soviet experiences,
might use the concept as the basis of a new approach to the
functioning of staff agencies in their organisations.
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